Plea Bargaining as a Pathological Practice

One of the best scenes in “The Wizard of Oz” is when Toto, Dorothy’s dog, pulls back the curtain on the Great Oz, exposing a terrified man hiding behind his fearful machinery. One lesson: Appearances are deceiving.
I thought of that scene the other day as I read the Connecticut Supreme Court’s decision in a case called State v. Elson.
Mr. Elson isn’t the sort of guy folks rally to support. In 2004, he got liquored up and went on a rampage after a coed at the Western Connecticut State University rebuffed his romantic advances. He assaulted the victim...
June 20, 2014

An "Appeal to Heaven" Fizzles

Jerad and Amanda Miller thought the revolution had begun, so they shot a couple of police officers at a pizzeria and then walked over to a local Walmart to announce it. An armed shopper shot Jerad, so Amanda killed the shopper. When police closed in on the couple, Jerad was shot dead and Amanda killed herself. Did I mention it all happened in Las Vegas?
Bonnie and Clyde join the tea party.
Within hours of the shooting, the press reported that the couple were radicals and racists with "anti-government views." The couple had placed a Gadsden flag, bearing the words "Don't Tread on...
June 12, 2014

Sidney Powell Grows Up

I've never understood why some criminal defense lawyers feel the need to make a great public display about how they only represent those whom they believe are truly innocent. There's a self-indulgent, almost moralistic quality to such declarations that render the lawyers untrustworthy. And hence my problem with Sidney Powell's otherwise excellent book, Licensed to Lie: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justice (Brown. 2014). She takes pains to tell us she never sides with sinners.
Powell is a former Justice Department lawyer who has, for the past 20 years, devoted her private...
June 8, 2014

The FBI Stalks Phil Mickelson

I have no idea whether Phil Mickelson, one of the world's premier golfers and three-time winner of the Masters golf tournament, is guilty of insider trading. But the mere fact that we are talking about it tarnishes his reputation. And why are we talking about it? The FBI has made public sport of stalking him.
It all has to do with the price of Clorox stock. In 2011, Mickelson and several others, including a big-time sports bettor from Las Vegas named William Walters, made millions virtually overnight on well-timed stock trades, according to reports published in The New York Times and...
June 4, 2014

Cushy Judicial Pensions

May 29, 2014
Oh, Dannell, what a disappointment you are. The governor's been pumping the judiciary full of geriatric pals, positioning them for $100,000 a year...

Spot a Killer Before He Strikes? Good Luck

May 28, 2014
Twenty or so years ago, I wrote one of the most difficult legal briefs of my career: The task was to compare and contrast the nature of the crimes...

Elliot Rodger and the Culture of Narcissism

May 25, 2014
Here’s a thought experiment: Pretend for the moment that Elliot Rodger had not gone on a killing spree in California. Put it out of your mind,...

Gen. Keith Alexander: Hacker Supreme

May 24, 2014
Did you catch the news that Eric Holder and the geniuses at Justice persuaded a grand jury to indict five members of the Chinese military? The...

Let's Get Serious About Jury Duty

May 22, 2014
Here’s a tip: If you want to avoid jury service, simply tell the judge you have a pre-paid vacation planned. No one will seek to verify if what...

The Elegance of Anarchism

May 19, 2014
"[T]he great emancipatory gains for human freedom have not been the result of orderly, institutional procedures but of disorderly, unpredictable,...

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Taking Back the Courts
Norm Pattis Taking Back the Courts

The Wizard of Oz was one of my favorites movies as a kid. Little did I know judges were so much like the wizard, hiding behind empty trappings of power. This book tells you things you need to know about what really goes on in court. Read it, weep, and then demand that the courts do better.

In the Trenches
Norm Pattis In the Trenches

Plenty of lawyers write about the law, but few who write try cases. Judge for yourself whether I talk the talk and walk the walk in this collection of occasional essays about life in the law's trenches.

Juries and Justice
Norm Pattis Juries and Justice

How prepared are you to take seriously the notion that 'we the people' are, in fact, sovereign? Discover the secret, and unused, power of jurors. 'Ask why; then nullify.'

Norm Pattis

About Norm

Norm Pattis is a Connecticut based trial lawyer focused on high stakes criminal cases and civil right violations. He is a veteran of more than 150 jury trials, many resulting in acquittals for people charged with serious crimes, multi-million dollar civil rights and discrimination verdicts, and scores of cases favorably settled.

© Norm Pattis is represented by Elite Lawyer Management, managing agents for Exceptional American Lawyers
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